The Crime

On 20 April, 2012 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia a missing persons report made headline news in the mainstream media. A former beauty queen, wife and mother of three was missing under what quickly appeared to be very suspicious circumstances. Her name was Allison Baden-Clay.

The name drew attention overseas as the ‘Baden’ part of the name was associated with the worldwide scouting movement and Lord Baden Powell.

As I continued to read the media headlines my interest grew. The interviews and reports of what I considered bizarre behaviour of her husband and his family brought me ‘to attention’. The story was on the lips of everyone I spoke to.

Ten days after her reported disappearance, Allison’s body was found by a canoeist on the bank of Kholo Creek under a road bridge. The media kept the story on page one.

On 13 June 2012, Gerard Baden-Clay, Allison’s husband was charged with the murder and disposal of her body. He was immediately held in remand pending a bail application. The following Thursday a bomb scare ended the bail hearing and it was held over until the following day, Friday 22 June. The accused was refused bail on the conditions that he was considered, by the judge, to be a flight risk.

At 11:52am on Tuesday 15th July 2014, following a trial by a jury of a dozen of his peers, Gerard Baden-Clay was unanimously found guilty of the murder of his wife Allison Baden-Clay. In Queensland, a life sentence is a mandatory 20 years. Having already been held on remand for two years, he will be eligible to apply for parole mid-year 2027.